The top AAA game franchises that found success on mobile

By Deepak Kumar When the biggest game developers noticed that the smartphone market was slowly eating into their revenues, they knew it was time for them to dabble in an ecosystem they never really expected to enter. While most released obligatory games for the mobile, others worked hard to bring masterpieces we will never forget. With Nintendo’s Mario hitting smartphones next year, we bring you a list of the top AAA game franchises that did (and are still doing) well on your touchscreen. Hitman Series How do you successfully penetrate into the smartphone gaming market if you are a stealth game? Its pretty simple. Do what Metal Gear Solid did when it tried to step into the PSP market! Launch a stealth centric turn-based strategy. [caption id=“attachment_341426” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Hitman Go[/caption] A title very similar to Metal Gear Acid, Hitman Go lets players control Agent 47 in a board game, trying to inch closer towards his targets grid-by-grid avoiding enemies to eliminate them. This game turned out to not only be a resurgence for the franchise, but an entry of all the Eidos titles into mobile. Today the Go series has become a popular Eidos property with follow ups like Tomb Raider Go and Deus Ex Go. Grand Theft Auto Series Back when GTA: San Andreas launched on Playstation 2 in 2004, it pushed the capabilities of the system. With so many things happening on the screen and a vast game world filled with smart AI to explore, Rockstar Games surely managed everything without as much as a frame drop on the ailing console making the title a household name. [caption id=“attachment_341427” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  GTA San Andreas[/caption] Despite it only being a port of a ten year old game, gamers were still shocked and awed when it launched on mobile. Not because the game was not fresh anymore, but due to the sudden realization as to how capable their mobile phones have become. Something they played in 2004 on a big fat system can now be played – on a better resolution - on such a tiny device that fits into their pockets. The game carried forward all the features from the console version. Injustice Gods among us Series [caption id=“attachment_341428” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Injustice is a reduced version of the console title for smartphones[/caption] Fighting games have never been very famous on smartphones. In fact, not even on home consoles. They have been the charm of arcades since the early 90s. But this game not only makes it accessible on mobile due to its perfect touch control but it also takes advantage of its familiar cast of characters from the DC universe. Fallout Series The Fallout series has been a big commercial and critical hit. More so, after Bethesda purchased the franchise, giving it a new (Elder Scrolls) coat of paint. While playing a Fallout game, traversing the unforgiving wasteland, you would always imagine how easy it would be to just lay back and relax in the vault itself. What more could it be than to repopulate the planet and inevitably bring it back to its former glory before the nuclear apocalypse? [caption id=“attachment_341429” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Fallout Shelter[/caption] The Fallout Shelter lets you sit back and manage a vault like a city-building strategy game. But it’s not as peaceful as you may have thought. Resource management is key. As the size and population of your vault increases, you have to masterfully manage your people to keep everyone healthy and safe as external forces from rats to raiders try to break in. And it works very well, albeit some difficulty spikes that make you want to throw your smartphone away in frustration or shell out some cash to make things easier. Warcraft Series [caption id=“attachment_341430” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft[/caption] Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is the best example of a game with easy to understand game mechanics perfect for mobile, along with enough depth to keep you coming back for more. It is nothing like the Warcraft strategy series or the ultra-famous World of Warcraft. But it utilises the characters from the PC franchise to good use, making a trading-card game that has become as famous as its MMO counterpart backed by a huge community of fanatics. Final Fantasy Series Square Enix was the first AAA developer to invest into game development for smartphones. What may have seemed to be a misstep for the developer at the time, using key resources and manpower on a device that had no future in hardcore gaming, actually paid off. [caption id=“attachment_341436” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Mobius Final Fantasy[/caption] After creating a completely new IP for the smartphones, Chaos Rings, SE went on to port the Japanese RPG Final Fantasy from the NES and SNES days. Todays gamers quickly picked up the classics – which may not have aged very well - even though they carried hefty price tags. They have now started creating original Final Fantasy content for the smartphones with graphic intensive games like Mobius Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius. FIFA Series [caption id=“attachment_341437” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  FIFA 16 Soccer[/caption] Fifa’s free-to-play iteration for smartphones does not do much different from the console version, and that is why it’s on this list. Its simple touch gameplay feels almost like a joystick. It will always appeal to the average casual gamer on their commute to school or office.